Masteries

Offense:
9

Defense:
9

Utility:
12

Ryze - The Rogue Mage"This is my recommended way to play Ryze, east to learn"

He is one of the few mage carries in League of Legends, all he needs is a lot of AP and mana to dish out some damage. For you to be a successive carry early, mid and late game you will need to read a few guides. Thanks to the first request in months I decided to play Ryze for real, and updated it. Now I hope you enjoy it and feel free to ask questions and add suggestions.

Core-Item Build:
Doran's Ring is one of the best starting items in the game, now you could also go for a Sapphire Crystal and rush Tear og the Goddess, but a good early-game important. An early Tear of the Goddess will allow you to spam up to increase your mana pool which ultimatly gives you more AP and damage on Overload. Mejai's Soulstealer and Sorcerer's Shoes are pretty standard while Rylai's Crystal Scepter is gotten spesifically to keep you alive while boosting your AP and giving you a nice slow to contribute with. Then it's a question of Lich Bane or Zhonya's Ring, personally I like to sell Doran's Ring for Zhonya's but if you still like Lich Bane there's nothing stopping you.

Early Game:
I usually go for Doran's Ring but it's all up to you. If you want to rush things like Tear of the Goddess you can consider buying a Sapphire Crystal and two health potions, however this will make it harder to farm up early game. When you pick a lane you will generally want to harass with Spell Flux by either making it hit your target 3 times or by making it go in-between the two champions you're laning against. When you master this you will be feared like you were holding a gold card over your head, thus giving you lane control. Now Auto-attack is tricky so timing is crucial when you have that item for more DPS, you can practice on the Golem but never panic when you are executing such a stunt. My usual approach against *****-champions (Squishy, Ranged, Casters) that often tower hug and harass with superior range, is to Flash in and then Hadoken them. This technique is not generally meant to execute your enemy but simply harass them severely which either gives you the opportunity to kill them later or forces them to recall. This is fine as long as you can keep up your mana pool, if not I would get a golem to be able to spam up for this trick... I mean that literally.

Mid Game:
Now that you have your ultimate you will know that quantity over quality, but of course use it whenever you are spell combing your target. Desperate Power is generally meant to be used to amplify your spells with AoE damage and more AP which makes it easier for you to farm up. When it comes to getting Mejai's Soulstealer, or Deathfire's Grasp I would look at the teams. If you think your team can support you and you can stay alive then I suggest Soulstealer. If not then I don't blame you, I recommend an early Kage's Lucky Pick and then Deathfire's Grasp whenever you feel like it. After Mejai's or Kage's go with Sheen to get an advantage over towers and improve your auto-attack last hitting. Now with the teamfights popping up you'll need a Golem Buff, it's too good to miss. You need to be careful in teamfights, as I mentioned that you will be targeted once you show your face at the front lines so you should keep your distance and wait for your initiators. Your job here is to AoE and focus down the focused target, you just take what you get but don't be afraid to take a chance trapping a DPS'er with Rune Prison. If things go wrong I would use Heal and just Flash out of it, if you die then you were too reckless and underestimated your opponents.

Mejai's Soulstealer or Deathfire Grasp, when to get what?
- If you know what you're doing, and generally do well get Soulstealer.
- If you're not doing well aim for Kage's Luck Pick -> DFG instead.

Late Game:
When your Tear of Goddess caps I think it's about time getting Archangel's Staff, just keep an eye on your mana bar. The reason for this is to simply maximize your damage on Overload and AP gotten from Archangel's Unique passive, though it's not much of a deal. Since you will gain a lot of mana here I think it's reasonable to max your overload here instead of early on, but don't forget to add a few levels into Rune Prison for your team. Lich Bane is a Item I rarely see among Ryze players but it's one of the best I can assure you. You may think Ryze casts all his spells and then walk away? Well that's wrong as you will be auto-attack during the Hadoken, this will improve your burst damage and allow you to take down towers. Don't forget that move-speed is important to reach your target when you're casting Rune Prison, if you are within range then start with Desperate Power and quickly cast Rune Prison. Otherwise they will run away, which is not good. If you are getting focused then you should be careful but you have to decide wether you wan't Banshee's Veil or Zhonya's Ring! If you do get fed enough you may be able to purchase both so no need to worry, I mean personally I think Doran's Ring a bit outdated at this point, so I suggest replacing it with a better ring... you get the picture. Now Ryze is what I'd call a hard carry, what does this mean? It generally means that if you have to right Items you will be unstoppable: E.g. if you have AP enough to down anyone that comes close to you, but don't get all cocky. Personally I've killed an entire team after getting my teammates kept them busy after getting 10x Stacks on Mejai's Soulstealer, but you'll die just as fast as they will if you get focused so by all means; don't get cocky.

Zhonya's Ring or Lich Bane, What's first?
- If your being targeted in teamfights and die sometimes, take Zhonya.
- If you are owning it up and all you need to do is help push, take Lichbane.

Thank you for reading, please leave a comment and rate the build as you like!